Focusing through the lens of the (COVID-19) lockdown which was enforced on the 30th of March 2020, it became apparent that students from rural resource-constrained educational institutions had to adapt to sustainable online learning platforms from traditional content delivery. WhatsApp a social networking app, but due to its low data consumption, it became a de-facto teaching and learning tool for Lupane State University (LSU) students in Zimbabwe. Prior studies have focused on the use of WhatsApp as an alternative lecture delivery platform but very few have evaluated its role as the sole platform for lecture delivery. With no government or institutional support for data acquisition, students failed to utilise other e-learning platforms that were in place due to exorbitant data costs. This study seeks to evaluate the success of WhatsApp mediated teaching and learning at LSU during the COVID-19 pandemic. This was a randomized evaluation of weekly lecture delivery through WhatsApp to LSU students. A questionnaire based on the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology’s main constructs was delivered to 200 students that were randomly selected. The results revealed that student’s attitudes, behavioral intention of using WhatsApp for learning as well as the platform’s usefulness were rated highly, implying high adoption. The positive perceptions suggest that it would be easy for the institution to formally integrate the platform to augment traditional lecture delivery or for use during an event that disrupts traditional face-to-face lecture delivery. Results revealed that WhatsApp can support 21st century learning through autonomous, collaborative and learner centred education.

The developing world has become the primary destination for used electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) exported by the developed world, making e-waste management critical. This paper aims to determine the state of e-waste management in Sub-Saharan Africa by critically reviewing the corpus on electronic waste (e-waste) management in the region. Even though many studies were conducted on e-waste management, very few are conducted on developing countries who are significant recipients of used EEE. We applied a systematic literature review (SLR) process on research articles retrieved from Web of Science, EBSCO Host and Sabinet databases. Using the keywords that included e-waste management or recycling or policy in Sub-Saharan Africa or Africa, we searched for articles from these databases. We analysed 25 papers selected from 151,558 papers initially retrieved to answer the research questions. The findings revealed that about 80% of research on e-waste management in the Sub-Saharan Africa region was undertaken in three countries: Ghana, Nigeria, and South Africa. The review of the selected articles revealed that lack of policy and limited recycling infrastructure were the main barriers to effective e-waste management. The SLR revealed that most

The outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic (SARS-COV-2) in December 2019 disrupted traditional forms of teaching and learning centred on face-to-face and in-class instruction. Governments enforced social distancing measures characterised by stay-at-home strategies and the closure of schools and other learning facilities. The government of Zimbabwe adopted radio broadcast as the primary tool for lesson delivery during the COVID-19. Contextually, Zimbabwe's radio signals are only accessed by 29.1 percent of the entire population, with weak to no reception in some regions, especially those in the south. While radio access is low, mobile phone ownership per household is over 90 percent. In light of the contextual dynamics, the study examined available technologies to deliver educational content during the COVID-19 lockdown as the government declared radio broadcasts as the primary tool to support teaching and learning. The study utilised an adapted Technology Acceptance Model as the theoretical framework. Secondary school teachers from the southern region were drawn through random sampling to participate in the survey to gather their opinions and practices. The study results revealed that teachers preferred to use smartphones and computers/laptops for teaching rather than radio. The study identified barriers such as lack of infrastructure, cost of data, lack of connectivity, lack of access to computing devices, and the institution's culture. The results could influence policymakers in adopting digital media for teaching, and this will equip learners with 21st-century skills. Continuous professional development of teachers should aim to improve their digital skills.

After the coronavirus outbreak, face-to-face teaching was interrupted partially or entirely, and several universities adopted a variety of remote-based learning approaches. Most institutions in the developing world were not ready for such an abrupt change. Access to appropriate devices that facilitate students' effective learning in developing countries remains a challenge. This study evaluates university students' perceptions regarding e-learning deployment during COVID-19 and the factors that affected usage. The quantitative study employed an adapted Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology model to guide the research process. The model has five exogenous and two endogenous variables. The survey research was administered to randomly selected undergraduate University students, with 314 completing the online questionnaire. The results show that performance expectancy, effort expectancy, and the facilitating conditions positively influenced the students' behavioural intentions to use Moodle. Thus, the students had a positive perception of online learning. Results indicate a significant loss of learning due to the unavailability of technology and the cost of data; nevertheless, students agreed that online learning represents the future of teaching and learning. The findings also show that subsidised access to resources and materials is critical for the effective adoption of e-learning. This study's output provides valuable information to policymakers and researchers regarding students' perceptions and the state of elearning at institutions of higher learning.

The study’s purpose was to evaluate factors that influence Information and Communication Technology adoption to support remote working by SMEs in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe. The Zimbabwean economy is excessively informal and has the largest informal economy globally, contributing 60.6 percent of the country’s national Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Small and medium-sized enterprises are vital economic drivers in the developing world. Today’s knowledge society demands firms to intensively apply ICTs for competitive advantage and market share. SMEs face many challenges during the current COVID-19 lockdown, and their survival depends on how they can adopt ICT for remote work. COVID-19 disruptions are being counteracted by e-commerce applications across all other sectors of the global economy. The study adopted a quantitative approach, where a questionnaire was used to gather views from 145 SMEs randomly selected in Bulawayo metropolitan province. From the samples, 113 questionnaires were completed. The study found that ICTs play a pivotal role in ensuring the success of remote working programs. Results indicated that ICT support services positively correlate with remote working and that most SMEs lack appropriate ICT tools to support remote working. Furthermore, SMEs face poor and expensive Internet and erratic electricity supply challenges. The study deduced that firms owned or run by young people promoted ICT adoption for telework. The study recommends improved government support by lowering Internet tariffs and supporting SMEs’ ICT acquisition through import duty exemptions. Future work can evaluate the impact of ICT on the financial performance of SMEs after adopting various teleworking schemes.